SSPC Guide 12

This guide provides specifiers and contractors with recommendations on types of lighting and illumination levels for areas where industrial coating operations are taking place. It contains descriptions of various types of lighting that are necessary for use when specific hazards and operating conditions are present, as well as recommendations for illumination levels when performing specific tasks such as surface preparation, coating application, and inspection. Also included are recommendations for levels of illumination in general work areas and in project staging areas where physical hazards such as trip hazards or large moving equipment are located.

The principal substantive 2016 revisions are the result of withdrawal of ANSI/IES RP 7, Practice for Industrial Lighting. This standard was the source for the recommendations in Tables 1 and 2 of the Guide. Because no direct replacement for ANSI/IES RP 7 exists, the reference has been deleted and replace with a reference to the State of Illinois Standard Specifications for Road and Bridge Construction, 2012. A new category (Project Staging Areas [large objects, trip/fall hazards, operating or moving support equipment]) has been added to Table 1 based on committee recommendations.

A footnote has been added to Table 1 allowing supplementation of ambient lighting with portable or hand-held lighting for inspection purposes; however the total minimum requirement of 50 footcandles (538 lux) remains unchanged from the 2004 version of the guide.

S.I. units (lux) have been added to the tables, with a note that the S.I. and U.S. Custom units are not exact conversions.

The Kelvin Color rating of 5000 to 6500 has been eliminated from the recommendation for white light. Instead, “white light” is defined as “light containing all wavelengths in the visible range at similar intensity.” The committee agreed that if a Kelvin Color range was included in the Guide, a requirement that contractors measure or document color ranges for lighting might be specified.